Travel :: Slovenia

How was your summer?

Ours was fantastic

partly due to this completely 

(what seemed to me) random trip

- Slovenia -

I find some of the best experiences come in obscure packaging

And I also find that as we travel Europe, it is not the topography that is so striking

(often something similar in the US)

but the architecture

So loving this view...

Look at these adorable, traditional haystacks with so much personality :)

As you may remember, Slovenia was part of former Yugoslavia until 1991

It didn't look or feel like it was a former Eastern Bloc country (although it was),

and Slovenia had the cleanliness and orderliness of their northern Austrian neighbors

We saw pizzerias in every village and

experienced the friendliness and warmth like their Italian neighbors to the west

Everyone we met spoke English, Italian, and Slovene

We traveled the northwest region of Slovenia through the Julian Alps,

which is a warmer section of the Alps due to the Mediterranean Sea being close-ish

As a result, delphiniums, cyclamen, and scabiosa grow wild in the forest

(I know!)

It's the perfect place for outdoor enthusiasts,

offering kayaking, rafting, paragliding, rock climbing, hiking,

zip lines, and even snow skiing in the winter

I'm dying to try river 'hydrospeeding' on specialized boards next time

As you can see, the water was an amazingly clear, sea-glass color

Although we ran out of time to do all we wanted to do, 

we did give 'canyoning' a try

which involved scrambling, climbing, 

sliding, jumping, rapelling (abseiling), and swimming

through narrow river canyons

Super fun, a little bit scary, and very wet!

And Lake Bohinj is where we would like to spend more time

on its beautiful tranquil waters

We found many delightful curiosities such as this homemade diving board...

(yes, we had to give it a try!)

...'open borders' between countries in this region thanks to the European Union

Not a person to be seen (although I'm sure video cameras were watching)...

Desolate border between Slovenia and Italy

& I'm always a sucker for a cow crossing photo op

One of our funniest moments was taking a wrong turn
which led us into a looong 5 mile tunnel

When we exited the tunnel, the sign said 'Willkommen'
for we had found ourselves in Austria

That was a surprise - talk about wrong turns!

How was your summer?

- photos by me -

(an unsponsored post)